


When Red Lyrium Sings.

by FaustGirl



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-05
Updated: 2017-08-07
Packaged: 2018-11-28 07:53:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11413494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FaustGirl/pseuds/FaustGirl





	1. Chapter 1

As soon as Raleigh Samson, the leader of the Red Templars put his feet in front of the cell in which the leader of the Inquisition had been locked, a smile appeared on his face and he leaned against the bars of the cell.  
Inside it there was a girl of no more than twenty-three or twenty-four years, who looked at him defiantly.  
She knew she was not in a position to face them, but they had killed the men who went with her and that couldn't be forgotten.  
Samson snapped his fingers and after him appeared two of his subordinates, one of them with a wooden box and the other with a small bag from which emanated a strange and dark power.  
They opened the cell door and before she could think what to do, they held her to the ground, so strong that she felt as if they were going to break every bone in her body.  
The ex-Templar laughed.

"Corypheus refuses to kill you and has ordered me to keep you alive until he considers it appropriate, although it is an idea that doesn't seduce me much...".

He knelt down to the Inquisitor and put his hand on her face, watching her closely.  
Samson thought she was a very beautiful girl and that if they had met in different circumstances he might even have slept with her, but that was not the situation and he tightened his grip a bit.  
She, full of courage or stupidity, at the sensation of pain he was producing her, spat on his face and he slapped her in anger.  
He got up and left the cell.

"You know what to do boys".

The red templar carrying the bag opened it and inside it the girl saw that there was red lyrium.  
Realizing what they planned, she began to struggle, but her efforts were thwarted and her captors managed to achieve their goal.  
After such torture they left her alone in that claustrophobic place while they laughed.

After several days the Inquisitor didn't notice any change, but after about three weeks or more, she no longer knew, from red lyrium intake, her body began to send signals that indicated that something bad was happening inside her.  
The first of these was the loss of vision in one eye, which she later recovered and which she didn't attach importance to.  
With the second began to notice certain punctures in the chest.  
The third signal was the one that most terrified her, and began to notice how her hair fell, to the point that she had been completely bald.  
It made her scream in horror, and panic surrounded her when she saw that her hair, instead of being brown when it grew, was white and little by little it turned red.  
Every day she stayed there, she wondered why she hadn't been rescued yet, and she wept at the thought that she would never see her family again.

 

One rainy morning the incessant sound of swords clashing and shouting filled the camp in which she was captured.  
Behind the bars of her cell she saw the wooden door that isolated her from the outside as it flew to crash against the wall and through it entered The Iron Bull followed by Cole, Dorian and Varric.  
The huge Qunari jerked the metalic door in a single jerk and Dorian entered the cell to check if the girl was fine.  
Cole came a little later, but unlike Dorian, he didn't dare to touch her, he just watched her from his position and frowned.  
Varric looked at him and crossed his arms.

"Is something wrong Kid?".

He looked at him and then looked back at her.

"It hurts...I feel that something is not going well...It hurts a lot...I feel that I am going to die...".

At the words, the Inquisitor slowly rose to her feet with the help of Dorian and they left.  
Sunlight struck her face, and everyone present was horrified to see the state in which her leader, her adored "Herald of Andraste" was.  
Her hair was the same color as the red lyrium, and her left eye looked just like Samson's.  
The young woman looked at Dorian with tears in her eyes and fainted.  
Bull took her in his arms and the remaining soldiers proceeded to return to Skyhold with several captured Red Templars.


	2. Chapter 2

During the weeks that the Inquisitor was unconscious, all Skyhold remained restless about the news that arrived and the possible threat of a new attack on the part of Corypheus.  
The soldiers continued to train under Cullen's watchful eye, and both Josephine and Leliana used diplomacy and moved all the threads they could while she was out of action.  
One morning as they all rushed back and forth, from the war room a shout could be heard, and Commander Cullen came running with a pair of soldiers.  
They froze at the sight of the girl, standing against the table as she stared at the nothingness with her lost gaze with a huge amount of red hair enveloping her.  
Cullen approached her slowly and the Inquisitor fixed her eyes on him.

"Any news?".

Cullen scratched the back of his neck and held out some papers in her hand.  
She read them very carefully before frowning at them.  
She hurried out of the room with the commander and the soldiers behind her.  
The blond man tried to stop her before she could take more advantage of them, and shortly before reaching her, she leaned against the wall to her right as she breathed heavily.

"Are you okay, Your Worship?".

She rested her palm on the place that ached and squeezed the fabric of the shirt she wore between her fingers.  
They took her back to her room and put her to bed so she could rest, but it was impossible for her so she lied there until Dorian came in through the door.  
The mage sat next to her on the bed and took her hand.

"How do you feel?".

Nimrie smiled and gave his hand a squeeze.

"I feel as if I have been stabbed with a dagger in the chest, but for the most part I am well".

As they spoke someone knocked on the door and they saw Vivienne accompanied by several women carrying things in their arms.  
Nim looked at her in surprise and she laughed lightly.

"Come on darling, get up from that bed, we're going to make you presentable, I can not stand to see you like that".

The Tevinter mage pulled her out of bed and carried her to the bathtub that had been prepared for her.  
The girl protested, but after much effort and time they managed to make her presentable again.  
Her long red hair now reached the height of her jaw and was falling into small scarlet waves.  
She was dressed in a dark blue dress, and she wore a beautiful gold necklace from which hung a white stone.  
After passing Vivienne's inspection to make sure everything was perfect, she headed for the war room, but Dorian stopped her and gave her a box when they were alone.

"I don't know if you will use it or not, but I still wanted to give it to you".

Nimrie opened the box and saw that inside it was a black patch that had a pair of birds embroidered in blue and gold.

"Thank you so much Dorian".

She hugged the mage and put the box in one of the drawers of her desk.  
They both went to Skyhold's hall and parted as Nim entered through the door leading to the war room.  
When she met Josephine, she asked her to find Leliana and Cullen and take them to an urgent meeting.  
The Antivan woman rushed to find her companions and the three met with the Inquisitor.

 

The atmosphere in the room was tense, until Nimrie's words broke it.  
The girl folded her arms and leaned against the wall as she looked at Cullen.

"Has there been any news of Samson's whereabouts?".

The commander shook his head and sighed.  
They all knew how much she wanted to catch him to make him pay for what he had done to her, but they had a limited number of options and they couldn't rush.

"I don't care how long it takes to find him, but when I do, he would never see the sunlight again".

Leliana held one of the numerous pieces that decorated the map of Thedas between her fingers and smiled.  
She was ready to give orders to her agents as well as her two companions.

"We will do what is in our hands Iquisitor".

The three of them left the war room and left Nim alone with her dark and vengeful thoughts.


	3. Chapter 3

The days turned into weeks and without realizing it had been a month after that horrible event.  
Nimrie looked the same as always in everyone's eyes, but her friends realized that there was something different about her, especially the fact that she never smiled anymore.  
There were millions of ways in her head that she would torture Samson when she could lay her hands on him.  
The man had hurt her so badly in such a short time that she could not forget him and wanted to take revenge even if she knew in some way that it would not be right to do so.  
The Inquisitor sighed softly and rose from her bed when they knocked on her door several times.

"You may come in".

She grabbed the shirt and trousers she had on the chair behind the desk and dressed quickly before anyone saw her.  
Turning, she saw that the person who had entered was Varric.  
The dwarf struggled to catch his breath and she approached him.

"Is something wrong Varric?".

"Leliana, Cullen and Josephine have asked me to come and find you as fast as I can".

"I'll go right away, thank you very much".

"You're welcome, Lily".

She walked over to the dwarf and kissed him on the cheek.  
The girl gathered her hair behind her ears and went to the war room.  
When she got there, she opened the door so hard that she had to hold onto it so she would not fall.  
When she had regained her composure she looked at her advisors.

"What's going on?".

Josephine gave her a paper and she read it carefully before dropping it on the table and giving a rather sinister smile.

"We must decide with caution how to proceed, I do not want errors, if we fail we may not know anything about him in months...".

"And that's something we can not afford, if it's still loose it's a threat just like Corypheus himself".

Leliana handed her another paper and leaned against the table.  
Nim read it and saw that Samson was in another of the Red Templar camps in The Emerald Graves.  
This was a wooded area full of Elven ruins, the perfect place for them to settle.

"It will not be easy to get him out of there, but we must try at the lowest possible cost of lifes, I do not want more people to die because of a handful of brainless people".

For several hours they weighed the options that they had and they pro-rated with which could have better result.  
Everyone hoped that no mistakes would be made and would capture the ex-templar in one way or another.

 

After several days the agents of the Inquisition brought Samson as a prisoner and put him in one of the cells until the date of his trial was decided.  
The advisors and the Inquisitor spoke long and hard about what to do with him when the time came and everything that could happen during the trial.  
After much thought, they set a date and everyone returned to their chores until the date had arrived.  
During that couple of days Nimrie had spent quite some time with Dorian in the library, and she had told him everything that happened to her during the time she was imprisoned.

"I never thought anything like that could happen to you, but the important thing is you're fine and back in Skyhold".

"I guess looking at it on the bright side could have been much worse... ".

Someone cleared their throat behind them and turned to see it was Cullen.  
The blond-haired man blushed slightly at the two mages eyes and scratched the back of his head.

"Everything is ready Inquisitor, just give the order and we will bring Samson".

"Perfect, go ahead, I will go after you".

"Your Worship".

The commander left them alone again, and she sighed.  
Her face showed the disgust she felt when she had to see the man again and Dorian put his hand on her shoulder.

"You know that if you do not want to do this, it's okay to say so...".

"I know Dorian, it's just that I'd rather go into a hole and never go out again".

"I understand you, but you are the Inquisitor after all, and you must do whatever it takes to end this nightmare".

Nim nodded and waved the mage with a hug and walked to the throne room.  
There everyone waited impatiently to see what would happen next.  
The Inquisitor sat on the throne and signaled to Cullen to bring the prisoner.

 

The door to the room opened and Samson came in with two soldiers, all they could hear was the sound of his shackles every time he moved.

"Knight-templar Samson, general to Corypheus, traitor to the order." The blood on his hands can not be measured. His head is too valuable to take. Kirkwall, Orlais: many would see him suffer. I can't say I'n not one of them".

Samson remained crestfallen, still wearing his armor.

"Judging him will affect as many as his crimes. I won't take it lightly".

Samson lifted his head and walked a couple of steps toward her before the soldiers' eyes, which she reassured with a wave of her hand.

"The red lyrium will steal your vengeance. You know what it does. Corypheus only delayed my corruption".

His eyes were fixed on the inquisitor, but she did not move even a millimeter at that look.  
The man's eyes had been dyed red by the lyrium, though he still retained the iridescence of his irises.

"Are you still lotal to that thing? He poisoned the order, used them to kill thousands".

"Templar have always been used. How may were left to rot, like I was, after the Chantry burned away their minds? Piss on it! Followed him so templars could al least die at their best! Same lie as the Chantry. The Prophet just isn't as pretty".

Samson spat on the ground and looked back at Nimrie, who took a more comfortable position on the throne.  
She sighed heavily and rubbed her nose before continuing.

"I found your people. They believed in you. Believes your cause was righteous".

"Not your businnes, Inquisitor".

He shook his head slightly and looked at Cullen.

"Your friend Maddox was so loyal, he killed himself, for you".

The commander's tone was serious and somewhat angry, although Nim did not blame him, many people had suffered through the man's guilt.

"They were always going to die. I saw what Corypheus was doing, so yes, I fed them hope instead of despair. Imade the believe their pain had purpose. Just like the Chantry does. Right Commander? It ended as well as anything else I've done.  
Corypheus would kill me in sight. I'll tell your people what they want. Everything Icared about is destroyed".

His expression and tone changed completely and the pain in his face could be seen, but that did not make Nim soften, since every time she looked at him she remembered what he had done to her.  
They remained silent until she decided what to do with him and spoke.

"Samson, you will spend your remaining years serving the inquisition. Cullen will be your handler. Perhaps he can get something useful out of you".

"I doubt the commander believes there's anything worthy left in me".

"You're not wrong. But you served something grater than yourself one. Perhaps you can be made to remember that".

Silence returned to the room, and the Inquisitor rose to her feet.

"We'll lock you in a cell until Cullen comes up with something to assign you, until then you'll stay there".

He looked at her and smirked.

"At your command Inquisitior".

The soldiers took him away and she sighed with relief.  
After saying goodbye to Cullen she retired to her room and lay down on the bed.


	4. Chapter 4

It had been a week since Samson's trial, but Nimrie was still not satisfied.  
She wanted to see him suffer more, and every time those thoughts came to her head, she smiled slightly, but then rejected them for being too brutal.  
She knew that something in her head was not going well and she cried for it until she fell asleep.  
But there was nothing she could do.  
One night when it rained as they had never seen before, the Inquisitor rose more disturbed than usual.  
She felt her heart explode in her chest and tried to calm down, but she could not, she could feel strong punctures, as if something were going to stab it.  
Nim got out of bed and wet her face in the pile near the window.  
She closed her eyes for a few moments and something awful stirred inside her.  
She left the fortress and walked in the rain to the prison with a disoriented look, which alerted some guards who went to warn Cullen immediately.

"Commander, we need you to go to the prison, we have seen the Inquisitor go there and she did not look very good, she seemed confused...".

Cullen feared the worst and ran out there.  
What they saw at the arrival froze their blood.  
Samson lay unconscious on the floor.  
His face and torso were covered with blood and in front of him, standing, was Nim.  
The girl laughed uncontrollably, and when she noticed his presence, she looked at them with her huge bloodshot eyes.  
Her hands, mouth and neck were covered by her blood and Samson's.  
It seemed that at any moment she would jump toward them, so that Cullen sent one of the two soldiers to look for Dorian.  
The mage arrived shortly after and filled with horror put her to sleep with a spell.  
Then they took Samson with the healers and she was taken to her room for examination.

"Cullen, this can not go on like this, at this rate he is going to kill us all while we sleep, it's not right in the head and it's all because what he had done to her".

"I know Dorian, but at the moment there's nothing we can do, I'll talk to Solas in case he can help us with this, but I do not know what will happen".

"You could put guards on her door to keep her in or maybe a spell".

"I had thought about it, but she will find some other way out, she's too clever...".

Dorian sighed and put a hand on Cullen's shoulder.  
The blonde put his on it and smiled.

"At the moment we can only wait and see what will happen, I know that she is strong and will overcome it".

"I hope so, good night commander".

They separated and each one returned to his room.  
The healers examined Samson and came to the conclusion that his life was not in danger, but if the bite on his neck had been a few inches higher he would have bled without anyone being able to help him.  
Nimrie had no major injuries, although her health was still somewhat impaired by the red lyrium.  
Dorian decided to keep Nim asleep until Samson had fully recovered and Cullen gave him a room just as he began to send him chores.  
The girl woke up somewhat confused as she touched her cheek.  
The area burned and she felt she had a wound, but she could not remember anything that had happened.  
Her stomach tugged and she picked up an apple from the bowl of the bedside table and began to devour it as Dorian entered the room.

"Hello, how are you?".

"Hello Dorian, something sore and dizzy...".

The mage sat down next to her on the bed and took her hand.  
She looked at him and saw sadness in his eyes.

"Has something happened?".

He sighed and squeezed her hand.

"Yes, and I need you to tell me the last thing you remember".

She thought for a moment and scratched her head.  
As much as she tried, only small fragments came to her, and in one of them she saw Samson's face covered in blood.  
She opened her eyes in terror as she realized what had happened.

"Did I do something to Samson? I just remember that I got out of bed and left the room, nothing more...".

Dorian nodded and she began to cry without realizing it.

"He's fine, so don't worry".

"I must apologize to him...".

"I don't think that's a good idea for now, if he sees you, chances are he'll try to strangle you".

"Great...".

The Inquisitor punched her head several times with her fist and the mage stopped her.  
He embraced her and she wept disconsolately on his shoulder.

 

The following weeks she tried many times to talk to Samson, but he dodged her everytime he could until she was able to hold him enough to speak.  
That day she was in the war room reading some papers and Cullen being so busy, he sent Samson to give them to her.  
What he did not know is that she was there and tried to escape, but she didn't let him.

"Could you stop running from me for a damn moment and listen to what I have to say?".

"So that you bite me to death again?".

There was a great deal of anger emanating from him, and she did not blame him, but at the same time she was also furious at having him in front of her.  
Nim left the papers he had brought on the table and turned to face him.

"I'm sorry to have done that to you, I do not know what happened to me, I just got out of bed and left the room, the rest I do not remember...".

In Samson's eyes she looked like a little frightened sheep and felt some pity for all she had to endure beeing so young.  
He did not want to forgive her, but he knew she did not want to do the same to him either, so they were in a draw and they didn't know what would get them out of the hole they'd gotten into.  
A sepulchral silence filled the room, and Nimrie grasped the edge of the table with both hands, squeezing it so hard that her knuckles went white.  
She wanted to cry and scream, but she would not give him the satisfaction of seeing her like this.  
The ex-Templar took a few steps back and left the room, leaving her alone again.  
He closed the door and stayed there for a few moments, in which he could hear sobs and something fell to the floor.  
He sighed somewhat frustrated and tried to get away from there as soon as possible.  
As she passed Josephine's table, she handed him some papers for Cullen, but she did not dare to ask if anything had happened and she saw him muttering under his breath.

When night fell they all went to the tavern, and between Varric and Cole they got the girl to take a bath and dress up to go with them.  
Everyone was surprised to see her there, but then they laughed and tried to cheer her up.

"Hey boss".

The Iron Bull approached her and put a beer mug in her hand.  
She looked at him almost on the verge of tears and hugged him.

"Thank you Bull...".

"Is nothing".

Sera appeared out of the corner of her eye and hugged her so tightly that they almost fell.  
They began to laugh uncontrollably and the tavern was filled with music and failed attempts to follow the lyrics of the songs without eating words.  
A few hours later Nimrie left with a couple of beer jugs and headed for the commander's office.  
After opening the door she saw that Samson was also there and left the jugs on the table.  
Before leaving, she made a small mocking bow and left.  
Cullen laughed a little at the face that Samson had put on since he had never seen her smile that way and he looked as if he wanted to stick a dagger in the blonde's eyes.

"Do not look at me like that, at least she looks better and she does not want to hurt you again".

"That seems and I hate her too much, but when I look at her I just feel sorry for her, at that age she should be with her family and sleeping with some lads from time to time...".

"True, but I have not seen her very interested in anyone, she does not have time for that".

"Well..., after all she's not just a pretty face, even if it seems the opposite".

At that comment Samson laughed and Cullen turned a little red.  
When they stopped laughing they drank.

"Have you thought about talking to her to clarify what happened between you two?".

Samson denied it with his head and gave a big drink to his jug.

"I do not want her to be thrown back to my neck, but seeing how she is now she would probably start crying if I touched her arm with a stick ..."

"She's been through a lot and tends to keep things to herself to the point of exploding".

"Nor do I blame her, she has an image to keep and she can't go crying in the corners".

They continued talking while they drank and at the end Samson rose from his chair.

"I'll go get some more of this".

"Be careful".

He left Cullen alone and walked to the tavern.  
When he entered, everyone stared at him but he did not mind and ordered two more beer jugs.  
With both of them in one hand he approached the Inquisitor, who at that moment was talking to Cassandra.  
Before the astonished glance of everyone he took her hand as if it were the most normal thing in the world.  
He led her to the battlements and gave her the beer.  
She stared blankly at him with her huge orange eyes.  
Samson caressed her cheek and sighed.

"Maker, you don't know how much I would like to throw you right now into the void so that you may die, but I can not do it...".

She covered his hand with his and approached him a little.

"After all, I got you out of that disgusting alley in Kirkwall where you were rotting, although I would have liked to have been able to meet you in other circumstances and not in the middle of all this shit...".

"Yes and I understand that is hard for you to forgive me after what I did, although I hope you do not".

She looked him straight in the eye and put both hands on his cheeks.

"There is nothing that can change what happened, but it is in our hands that what comes is better and forgiving each other will be the most appropriate now, after all I will not let Corypheus get you again".

While they were talking, it began to rain quite hard and they had to run for cover.  
In the middle of the race Nimrie brought her hand to her chest and stopped.  
Samson, when he saw this, took her in his arms, taking care not to hurt her with the crystal that protruded from his chest and went under the stone arch that led to the lowest part of Skyhold.  
The girl clung tightly to him and did not seem to want to let go.  
The ex-Templar barred her to reassure her, and when her pulse had diminished he left her on the floor.

"Thank you...".

They were soaked to the bone, and neither seemed to want to part with the other.

"We should get in and dry our clothes".

"We should...".

He pushed a red lock away from her face and stood in silence for a long time as the sound of the rain and the light from the huge falling rays enveloped them.  
There was something in Nimrie's eyes that Samson could not explain clearly, but every time he looked at them, it made him feel calm.  
When she felt him staring at her, the girl turned red and looked away.

"Why so shy?".

"I don't know...".

Their voices were barely a whisper at the amount of noise.  
He grabbed her chin and turned her face to look at him again.  
He was surprised to see fear in her eyes and he kissed her forehead to calm her down.  
At that small gesture the girl's face grew even redder, and when he had separated from her, she took his face in both hands and kissed him.  
Samson's eyes widened so much that they ached and he didn't know how to react when she broke the contact.

"I'm sorry, I should not have done it...I'm so sorry...".

She tried to part with embarrassment and her eyes filled with tears, but he did not leave her and hit her against the stone wall as he captured her lower lip between his teeth and kissed her fiercely.  
Their tongues joined in a dance that seemed to have no end, and she struck her body even more against the ex-Templar's, who moaned.  
They had to separate for lack of air.  
Nim leaned her head against the stone wall as she gasped and Samson rested his forehead on the curve of her neck.  
They both felt their lips burning, but they didn't care.

"Sam...son...".

The mere pronunciation of his name on the part of the Inquisitor in that half-drowned tone made a chill run through his body that run to his crotch.  
He lifted his head to look at her, unable to utter a word.  
The girl was grinning and her eyes shone like he had never seen before.  
She separated from him and led him to the fireplace in the throne room and sat in silence as they dried looking at the flames.  
Nimrie rose from her seat and shuffled her hair a little.

"The commander is probably wondering where you are, you should go with him, I will retire to rest, there have already been enough emotions for today...".

She walked over to him and gave him a soft peck on the lips.

"Good night Samson, rest".

"You too Inquisitor...".

Once she had disappeared through the door leading to her room, Samson hit his forehead with the palm of his hand and gritted his teeth.

"What the fuck are you doing Samson?".

He sighed a little dejectedly and walked slowly toward his room.  
Nimrie did not stop repeating over and over again what was wrong with her as she furiously beat the pillow in front of her and covered her face with her hands as she blushed as she remembered the way he had kissed her.  
Not that she would not have liked it, it was just that she did not expect the man who tried to turn her into a monster now tried to be affectionate with her.  
Between those thoughts both fell asleep with the soft pounding on the crystals of rain that had begun to fall again.


End file.
